


Light It Up

by CassidysPersona



Series: Soft Moments Between Ross Barton & Chrissie White [4]
Category: Emmerdale
Genre: Christmas Fluff, Christmas Party, Cigarettes, F/M, New Year's Eve, Smoking, Talking, Yuletide
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-30
Updated: 2016-12-30
Packaged: 2018-09-13 12:45:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,533
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9124228
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CassidysPersona/pseuds/CassidysPersona
Summary: Ross and Chrissie are feeling the New Years Day gloom, how they're starting a new year still with problems, Chrissie's sulking because of the slideshow and Ross is trying to escape his mother's claws and what's a better way to bond? Light up a cigarette and complain about your problems. Chrissie has some wise words for Ross and Ross gives Chrissie a confidence boost.Rated for teen audiences and up because of the use of cigarettes





	

**Author's Note:**

> So as much as I love Rebecca the whole Ross and her thing is a big no-no in my opinion, I'd rather have Chross any day so for any fans out there here's a bit of fluff between the pair. I read a Harry Potter fanfiction a while back where Regulus and Lily shared a cigarette up on the astronomy tower so thanks to the author whoever you are for inspiring this one shot :)

Midnight struck, people were sharing kisses; holding hands, hugging and Chrissie was stood outside thinking, thinking about everything. Was 2017 going to be any better than 2016? Her sister had managed to embarrass her in front of multiple clients and the village, again and she was now outside alone, her dad angry at her and spending another new year with nobody around to hug or hold. Ross pulled away from his mum and stepped outside into the cold winter fresh air, disappointment in the fact he never actually got to be with Rebecca, he had to admit though it was a rather posh party and if it hadn’t been for his mum staying he would’ve left ages ago. He stepped across the gravel where he found Chrissie looking pensive.

“Your daddy wasn’t pleased with you, half expected him to keel over again,” Ross laughed at his own insensitivity but when the brunette looked up at him he realised what he had said. Ross had just started his first new year without his dad, the who had raised him since childhood and even though he may have struggled with three sons, he did the best he could under the circumstances something Ross had struggled to understand until now, he wasn’t there when his dad died, something he deeply regretted but Adam was there though the one person he detested the most being there and now he had entered 2017 without his dad and he was going to have many more years of that to come.

“Not exactly the best joke to make given the fact yours has actually died,” Chrissie was fiddling with her fingers and she sucked her teeth in before rubbing her hands against her dress, “I thought you and Rebecca would at it, knowing Rebecca she’d probably choose a toilet or somewhere else where cheap tarts go.”

“Alright jealous, the jealous sister routine doesn’t work on you Chrissie,” Ross pulled out a packet of cigarettes and offered one to the brunette in front of him, “what?” he asked disapproving of the look she was giving him, that I’m better than you and know it look, “I need something to get me through the day and given the fact I work as a taxi driver I can’t really take up drinking.”

Chrissie took one last look at the large house in front of her and then thought about what her dad would say, then again he was too upset with her and probably sharing a moment with Ronnie so spur of the moment she decided you only live once, “as long as you have a lighter,” Chrissie grabbed the coffin nail as she called them and held out her hand for the neon yellow lighter Ross pulled out his pocket. Chrissie certainly wasn’t a saint, being around Donny Cairn had got her involved in heavy drinking, smoking and one evening a week she would go around his and they’d enjoy a joint after discovering she was pregnant the brunette gave up all that and changed her life around again, for the first time in bordering on eighteen years she placed the cigarette into her mouth and got the shock of her life when she lit the it, she coughed her lungs out and held it away from her, “I forgot that part,” she cleared her throat and stared up at Ross who had an amused look on his face, “I smoked for a while when I was with Donny, then I fell pregnant with Lucky and gave up didn’t miss it so I didn’t restart,” she gave the light back to Ross and then tried again she inhaled for no little than five seconds before finding that familiar relief and she blew out a cloud of poisonous air, the white puffy cloud evaporated and Chrissie looked up at Ross, “you been doing that for long then?” Chrissie tapped the cigarette and ash dropped off it and soaked into the wet ground.

“Not around Moses but since my dad died I’ve been secretly lighting up where Finn and Pete can’t see me or mum,” Ross sat down next to Chrissie and turned his head to face her, “don’t take it up again…you’re way too pretty to start destroying yourself.”

“Does my sister know? That you’re with me,” Chrissie breathed in another puff of poison before blowing out another cloud of smoke, “I thought she’d have you in her knickers by now,” she tapped the edge again and ash dropped down.

“Nah she’s sulking somewhere,” Ross breathed in his cigarette and savoured the feeling before blowing out, “I asked your dad but he was sharing a moment with your future step-daddy,” Ross nudged her side and Chrissie laughed as she tilted her head down before breathing in again, “how does it feel?” he asked her and Chrissie pushed herself up and made a confused look at the dad next to her. What did he mean? “losing a parent…how does it feel when the pain starts to die away?” Ross tapped the edge of the cigarette and watched as ash fell into the same spot where Chrissie’s ash had landed. Chrissie’s face softened as she knew exactly what Ross was feeling, her mum had died in 2011 and she had begun to realise that she didn’t think of her as much as she used too, not that she didn’t love her mother but she wasn’t at the full front of her mind she was still there but only when she caught her dad and Ronnie reminiscing or when she argued with Rebecca, Ellen would’ve sorted them out a long time ago but Lawrence didn’t quite have the power Ellen did when it came to disciplining his daughters. He never had the heart to tell them off and so many years later he was paying the price. Ellen was always there but she wasn’t as much as she used to be.

“For the first few months my mum was always there,” Chrissie breathed in the cigarette again and then blew out the cloud of smoke, “the pain was there…the fact I’d never have her advice again or her hugs or hear her voice, however, I had Lucky to distract me she died not long after he started secondary school I needed to make sure he was ok…the good thing for you is that you have Moses and he’ll be the reason you get up every day and the reason you cope each day, the pain doesn’t go away Ross if I told you it did I’d be lying,” Chrissie noticed she was at the end of her cigarette, she dropped it to the floor and stamped on it, “I have not had one of those in a long time,” she sniffed the end of her fingers and she made a disgusted face, “I bet I stink of it now, you got any male perfume in that pocket of yours?”

“Obvs given the fact that I can hardly go home stinking of smoke or be around my son,” he pulled out a miniature can of Lynx and chucked it to the woman he had shared a smoke with, “so it doesn’t go away?” he asked her as she sprayed the can of Lynx Africa.

“No…but it does get easier to live with I lost my mum coming up to six years ago and I still miss her but I can go about my life without thinking about her, trust me Ross that little boy will be the reason you want to carry on…he’ll make you happy, he’ll make you feel things that you thought you’d have lost when your dad died,” Chrissie gave him back the can and contemplated whether to have another but then her free of smoke brain kicked in and there was no way she was going back to smoking nothing would make her go back full time.

“You know despite what the village say about you, underneath that spoilt rich girl exterior you’re actually really nice,” Ross took one last breath and threw his to the ground too, “you should show it a lot more people might like you then,” Ross then heard from afar the calling of ‘Ross! Where are you?’, “that’ll be mother,” he placed his hands in his pockets and then pulled out the box and chucked them into the bush beside him, “you say I have Moses to live for…well new day, new year,” he then did something out of the ordinary, he hugged her and Chrissie hugged him back, “and stop comparing yourself to your sister, you’re alright as you are.”

“Ross where are you?” Emma’s voice echoed through and he pulled away from Chrissie resisting the urge to kiss her, he always had something with Chrissie he just couldn’t explain it.

Chrissie pulled away from the man she was technically an employer for and shivered as the cold air finally hit her, “You better go before your mum thinks you’ve ditched her and I need to go in before I freeze,” Chrissie then heard her dad calling her and she sighed heavily, “I’ll be grounded next for having a walk."

**Author's Note:**

> Reviews and opinions are most welcome :)
> 
> Love  
> Cassidy xxx


End file.
